The present invention relates generally to an inner cylinder direct injection spark ignited internal combustion engine (hereinafter, also referred to as a direct injection spark ignited internal combustion engine or also simply referred to as an engine) in which fuel is directly injected into an inner part of en engine cylinder and relates particularly to a control technique for the direct injection spark ignited internal combustion engine in which appropriate controls of a fuel injection timing and an ignition timing are carried out during a cold engine start demanding an earlier temperature rise (earlier activation) of a catalytic converter (or called a catalyst) in an exhaust system of the engine.
A Japanese Patent No. 3325230 issued on Jul. 5, 2002 (which corresponds to a U.S. Pat. No. 6,345,499 issued on Feb. 12, 2002) describes a previously proposed technique in which, as a catalyst warming up method of the direct injection spark ignited internal combustion engine, at least twice (two times) split injections are carried out which include: a later period injection to form an air mixture fuel having a partial rich and lean air-fuel ratio within a combustion chamber within an interval of time from a suction stroke to an ignition timing; and an earlier period injection in which fuel is injected at a timing before the later period injection to enable a spreading of fire with a fuel at the later period injection and with a combustion at the later period injection to generate the air mixture fuel of a leaner air-fuel ratio than a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, when an exhaust gas purification purpose catalytic converter is in an un-warmed up state in which a catalytic converter temperature is lower than an activation temperature of the catalytic converter, the ignition timing is retarded by a predetermined quantity toward a more retard angle side than an MBT (Minimum angle for Best Torque) point, an ignition timing is set before a compression (stroke) top dead center in a no-load region of the engine, and the ignition timing is retarded after the compression top dead center in a low-speed-and-low-load region except the no-load region. The above-described later period injection is carried out after a middle period of the compression stroke, for example, 120° BTDC (Before Top Dead Center) through 45° BTDC.